Stellantis CEO Antonio Filosa has warned of cost inflation through 2027 and likely into 2028 while confirming plans with Leapmotor to develop low-cost electric vehicles (EVs) in Italy for 2028 sales.
Reuters reported that Filosa made the comments at the annual general assembly of Italian automotive parts association Anfia in Milan, Italy.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Discover B2B Marketing That Performs
Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.
He said Stellantis and its suppliers should prepare for price pressure on raw materials and electronic components.
“We know that in 2027, and probably also in 2028, we and our suppliers will have to deal with significant raw material inflation, as well as cost inflation linked to memory chips, PCBs (printed circuit boards) and semiconductors”, Filosa was quoted as saying.
A Stellantis spokesperson subsequently told the news agency that the comments related to the group’s overall cost base, which amounts to billions of euros annually.
Filosa called for greater competitiveness and public support to address input costs, particularly energy costs.
He also urged Italian and EU authorities to support measures addressing energy costs and introduce more favourable industry regulation, including on carbon emissions.
He confirmed that Stellantis and its Chinese partner Leapmotor will jointly develop future “e-cars”.
Production is scheduled to take place at Stellantis’ Pomigliano plant in Italy, and sales are expected to begin in 2028.
The e-cars category is intended to comprise low-cost EVs for Europe’s entry-level passenger-car market.
The partnership will focus on the joint development of future electric and electronic solutions across Stellantis’ European plants, including its facility in Italy.
“Leapmotor and this partnership will help us at our European plants, including one in Italy, and will support the joint development of future electric and electronic solutions. E-cars is one of the areas on which we will work closely together,” Filosa said.
Earlier this month, Stellantis signed an asset purchase agreement to sell its Brampton assembly plant in Ontario, Canada, and related equipment to Canadian defence technology company Roshel.
